My wife is going downhill slowly

[Gravity Aided]

I have only ridden with a very large saddlebag and even that made a big difference to the bike's handling.

I do take it easy on windy descents now after almost being blown off the road once when hit by a sudden gust of crosswind when I was doing about 45 mph!

Panniers do make a difference, but they also seem to contribute to stability, if the weight is properly distributed, but the panniers also catch the wind readily.

 

[HelenD123]

Panniers do make a difference, but they also seem to contribute to stability, if the weight is properly distributed, but the panniers also catch the wind readily.

My Ultra Galaxy felt like a different bike once I put front panniers on in addition to the rear ones. I instantly felt much more confident.

 

[HarryTheDog]

Why would she not be happy to move her hands towards the stem for a short time while braking? It also puts you in a more upright position so you can see the road better in my opinion

She just thinks it would feel weird having her hands so close together, her bars are only 40cm wide as it is. The ones I have in the parts bin( came with my CX9 which I took off, because for me they just got in the way) I put on the bars of her bike to demonstrate ( not connected up) she just did not like it and at the moment too much work to set up properly unless she really thought it would help.
As to someone else mentioning a tandem, my wife thinks I am a loon and would never contemplate it,

 

[vickster]

My bars are a 38cm on the Genesis, never had an issue (not much space for stuff though especially with thick tape all the way to the hoods)

Sounds like she is a rather more hardcore rider than me. Maybe look at a shallower drop bar if that helps reach to the brifters?

 

[Berties]

lots of slow riders going down hill .I'm not the quickest going down hill ,its just makes me put more effort on the flat and I'm an animal going up hills,
i like 28s and 25s tyres for going down hills ,

 

[Kestevan]

Mrs Kes used to struggle on long/fast descents. She found the reach to the brake levers too far to be comfortable and this unconsiously lead her to gripping too hard and over braking. This in turn resulted in hand ache and poor braking so she was really not happy.

A set of shallow drop bars, and a switch to SRAM levers made things much more comfortable and she now happily zooms down at much increased velocity secure in the fact that she can actually stop if needed.

 

[xzenonuk]

when i started cycling again i found i was nervous going down hills at speed, if she sticks with it she should soon get more confidence, now im hitting 32 mph on steep downhills on a mtb

if i could get my bike to go faster with the gearing i would and i was hammering the brakes when i started again

 

[Shortmember]

When you consider the damage done to Bono's face and arm in his recent cycling accident I think it's a wise thing to cycle around at moderate speeds.You might get to your destination a few minutes slower than the rest, but who cares as long as you arrive in one piece?

 

[vickster]

There was that chap on here recently who buggered his shoulder and other bits royally when he lost control on a big hill, thus happy enough to go down gently especially where unknown or twisty, or busy with traffic

 

[Mo1959]

There was that chap on here recently who buggered his shoulder and other bits royally when he lost control on a big hill, thus happy enough to go down gently especially where unknown or twisty, or busy with traffic

Yep, ditto. Believe me, slamming into the road at 20mph hurts.....a lot! I still get flashbacks and tense up quite a bit on downhills as soon as the speed creeps up.

 

[cyberknight]

Just stick a couple of bricks in some panniers, sorted

 

[Feastie]

I've got a problem with going downhill as well. Also, turning to the right in too tight a circle. If you've fallen off before when doing something (in my case, the 2 above), it really messes with your nerves. I came off going downhill when my brakes failed once (read: threw myself off to avoid going into a busy road) and quite recently was turning right and the front wheel just slipped out underneath.

Psychological damage, that's what it is! Every time I go to do those things, physically I feel like I'm re-creating the circumstances where I ended up hurting myself before. Even though a fear of turning right is so ridiculous all I can think of is Zoolander. I'd love to know the 'cure' for this - but otherwise, I'd say if your wife is happy to accept her own limitations, it's so much more relaxing to cycle in a way which makes you feel safe and secure on the bike. Feeling terrified something is about to slip or go wrong is really unpleasant. I plan my routes around this exact thing - avoid big downhills, avoid going too fast round right turns. Although admittedly I'm not competitive, just cycling to commute and for pleasure!

 

[jefmcg]

Yep, ditto. Believe me, slamming into the road at 20mph hurts.....a lot! I still get flashbacks and tense up quite a bit on downhills as soon as the speed creeps up.

I've never had a high speed crash, but when Wouter Weylandt died during the Giro d'Italia, I accidentally visited a news site that had a photo of his face after the crash. He was a far more skilled rider than I will ever be. Can't get that image out of my head.

Still, that was 80kph, which is a lot faster than I generally go downhill.

 

[HarryTheDog]

Just a quick update and points to note. Yes the bars are short reach and shallow drop. The aim is not to get her to descend like a demon just to get rid of the overwhelming anxiety, it is ruining her enjoyment and could be dangerous in a large bunch. Anyway she has had the hypnotherapy on Tuesday, she thought it was just like going to a relaxation class and was unsure it did anything until asked to open her eyes. She felt them glued shut. She came home and jumped on the Turbo for over an hour which was surprising as I bought it 6 weeks ago and she has been on it once up till now so maybe something mentally was triggered. We hoped to do the acid test today but our son paid a flying visit so the morning got disrupted and then the roads looked too greasy for confidence as a drizzly shower was coming down. Also she enjoyed our one outing on MTB's the other week, ( apart from the downhill anxiety) so she decided she would rather do that tomorrow. So I then spent part of the morning sizing her up on it and lopping 2 x 1.5 inches off the bars on her MTB as they are so wide. So hopefully tomorrow I may have some moderate success to report if we go out ( might not if too wet), its going to be sloppy mud on the route we will take so no speeds will be achieved but she can gauge her anxiety levels. If huge anxiety is still present then we wasted a few quid on hypnotherapy and its a case of time on the bike or sack the idea of a fast time on the sportive sell the road bike ( or I keep it, as its more modern than mine and I fit on it perfectly with a slightly longer stem) and stick to going for a bimble on the MTB's .

 

[ColinJ]

I've got a problem with going downhill as well. Also, turning to the right in too tight a circle.

Ah - I feel odd doing that too, but I don't worry about tight left turns! It is probably because one tends to fall towards the inside of the turn, and I habitually unclip my left foot when I stop.

I decided to do a u-turn on a narrow lane once and fell onto my right knee, which hurt A LOT!